RomReal's (OB:ROM) Shareholders May Want To Dig Deeper Than Statutory Profit

RomReal Limited's (OB:ROM) healthy profit numbers didn't contain any surprises for investors. We think this is due to investors looking beyond the statutory profits and being concerned with what they see.

Check out our latest analysis for RomReal

How Do Unusual Items Influence Profit?

Importantly, our data indicates that RomReal's profit received a boost of €857k in unusual items, over the last year. While we like to see profit increases, we tend to be a little more cautious when unusual items have made a big contribution. We ran the numbers on most publicly listed companies worldwide, and it's very common for unusual items to be once-off in nature. And that's as you'd expect, given these boosts are described as 'unusual'. We can see that RomReal's positive unusual items were quite significant relative to its profit in the year to December 2021. As a result, we can surmise that the unusual items are making its statutory profit significantly stronger than it would otherwise be.

Note: we always recommend investors check balance sheet strength. Click here to be taken to our balance sheet analysis of RomReal.

Our Take On RomReal's Profit Performance

As we discussed above, we think the significant positive unusual item makes RomReal's earnings a poor guide to its underlying profitability. For this reason, we think that RomReal's statutory profits may be a bad guide to its underlying earnings power, and might give investors an overly positive impression of the company. The good news is that it earned a profit in the last twelve months, despite its previous loss. The goal of this article has been to assess how well we can rely on the statutory earnings to reflect the company's potential, but there is plenty more to consider. In light of this, if you'd like to do more analysis on the company, it's vital to be informed of the risks involved. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with RomReal (including 2 which are concerning).

This note has only looked at a single factor that sheds light on the nature of RomReal's profit. But there are plenty of other ways to inform your opinion of a company. For example, many people consider a high return on equity as an indication of favorable business economics, while others like to 'follow the money' and search out stocks that insiders are buying. While it might take a little research on your behalf, you may find this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks that insiders are buying to be useful.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.